At the juncture of a sloped roof where it abuts a portion of a vertical wall there is ordinarily a flashing used to cover the juncture to prevent water from leaking down through the juncture where the vertical wall meets the sloped roof. The flashing comprises a wall flange which is mostly hidden from view beneath the wall covering and a roof flange which is mostly hidden from view by the roof covering. In the vernacular of the trade it is often referred to as a step gable/wall flashing. Such flashing often comprises a series of flashing members arranged in stepped manner each lower member being inserted an effective distance beneath the next higher member in the same manner that roofing shingles or tiles are positioned; this provides cascading of water as it flows from one overlapping portion, in turn, to the lower overlapped portion. If the wall covering and the roofing each comprises a contiguous overlay of a continuous flashing, then there may be only one lower step of flashing member positioned as the lowest part of the overall flashing arrangement. At the lowest point of the flashing arrangement, water can flow onto the wall unless there is provided a means for diverting the water away from the wail beneath the lowest portion of the flashing.
The valley at the juncture of two sloping roofs does not generally present the same problem since the lower edges of the two sloping roofs are usually offset from the walls beneath them by eaves. There is, however, a problem at the juncture of a vertical wall and a sloping roof if the wall extends beyond the eave of the sloping roof. There water being shed from the roof flows onto the portion of the wall which protrudes beyond the edge of the sloping roof where it can create stains, rotting, or other problems, depending on the type of material covering the wall at that point. Conventional means do not adequately prevent water flowing down the flashing from falling onto the vertical wall at the end of the flashing.
The problem referred to above is addressed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,109,641 which discloses a terminal flashing part for use at the low end of a juncture of a sloped roof with a vertical wall. The patent discloses, at the low end of the flashing, an offset in the part of the flashing bent at right angles (said to be "L-shaped") for the purpose of diverting rain away from the vertical wall portion which extends beyond the juncture with the sloping roof. Behind that offset in the flashing is a space provided for inserting an end of a strip of wall siding, thus that offset portion is visible when installed in position and with the siding in place. The bent portion disclosed there forms a right angle corner at the low end of the flashing, nearest the vertical wall, which can collect leaves and dirt. A collection of leaves and dirt holds moisture and the moisture causes accelerated rusting or other degradation of the flashing material, e.g., galvanized metal. Such rusting or degradation tends to shorten the useful life of the right angle diverter and can permit water to flow onto the vertical wall below the low end of the flashing.
It is an object of this invention to provide a diverter at the low end of the flashing which is slanted in a manner to direct water away from the vertical wall and which does not collect dirt or other moisture-retaining debris.
It is also an object to provide a water diverter at the low end of the flashing which permits the wall covering and the roof covering to cover substantially all of the flange portions of the flashing leaving visible only a small amount of flashing, including the diverter, providing an aesthetically attractive and beneficial covering of the juncture of the roof and wall.
It is a further object to provide a flashing with a diverter which can be made of a variety of materials, including, but not necessarily limited to, galvanized metal, corrosion resistant metal, plastic, copper, anodized aluminum, ceramic, resin-impregnated fiberglass, vitreous material, roofing tile clay, composition roofing material, impervious bonded mineral fibers, and the like.